Pro tip to the inexperienced.  In Vegas, there’s the short way to get to your hotel on the Strip, typically via Swenson and Tropicana.  This comes straight out of the north end of the airport and should cost you around 15-20 bucks with no traffic.

And there’s the long way … via the freeway that comes out of the airport south, and around to the strip afterwards.  The fare can run up to 30-50 dollars.

Going the tunnel/freeway route means you got “longhauled”.  It’s a generally a crime if done without express permission, and it is still done all the time by cabbies trying to run up fares.

What does this look like?  Here’s a google maps example going to Aria.

Here’s an article by the Las Vegas Review-Journal about the extent of the longhauling problem and the ineffectiveness of the crackdown.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/going-the-long-way-costly-cab-trips-grow-into-epidemic-148421785.html

Always tell the cab driver that you want the shortest path to your destination and “no tunnel”.  Don’t say quickest, because quickest is discretionary, and lots of cabbies like to claim that it is quicker to go via the freeway.